Rome Day 2

I started very early and was in the centre of Rome by 8.30.

Roman Holiday!

The only sign I could see at the Colosseum said entry was €12. What a rip! I went to the Palatine Hill. On the way I saw this

The Arch of Constantine. Last seen: 7th Form Classics

There was no queue at the Palatine Hill, and I could buy a ticket for that and the Colosseum for €12.

Newly discovered - the remains of Nero's rotating restaurant. I'm serious.

The Palatine area is very large but I was surprised that all the ruins were brick. Where is the marble?

It's no wonder the Greeks and Romans took over the world - they kept fit.

There was a small museum, full of more blasted pot shards, and some broken statues. I went on to Augustus’ house.

It's a bit hard to make out what was what

The Forum

From the other angle

It all looked like a bit of a jumble.

Arch of Titus

Inside one of the end buildings was a small exhibition about Nero.

People having their debts written off

There were also statues of Nero that had been reworked in to Domitian, then back to Nero again. I went out towards a large white building.

Monument to Victor Emmanuel II. Aka the wedding cake and the typewriter.

Ah! The column of whatsaface! Him! Trajan!

There were a lot of gelateria in the area. When in Rome! Then I went back to the Colosseum. The ticket queue had a billion people in in. But because I already had a ticket I could walk straight in. Suckers!

They have been doing it up constantly and now there is a museum around the outside corridors.

Graffiti from the stands

POT SHARDS from Nero's fire of Rome

I didn’t find it that interesting. But once I was inside:

Big enough to fit all the tourists

From there I walked down to the Circus Maximus.

I wonder if they mow it?

Then I went down the Appian Way

If there is an ancient section I did not see it

Then I walked a bit further on to the baths of Caracalla. One part of this has become an athletic stadium. There were a lot of retirees running around the inside of the track. The Asians may live to an old age but they turn in to hunchbacks with one tooth. I have seen it. Older Italians may not be as old but they still jump hurdles.

The Baths of Caracalla are €6 to enter, and worth it.

They are huge

This was basically a gym complex. I belong to Les Mills Auckland, which is the largest gym in NZ, and it is only about 1/5 the size of this.

and it doesn't have mosaics

The volume of bricks was truly impressive

Modern gyms would do well to have nice grounds like this

From here I tried to find San Giovanni in Laterano. The route went off my map. I decided to head in the general direction. It worked, with a bit of a bimble.

Nicked from the Egyptians

The church is actually the cathedral of Rome and is a bubble zone that belongs to the Vatican.

Catholic interior

Larger than life statues of the apostles

For example, Phillip.

It is on the tourist trail but was not crowded in the afternoon. From here I walked back towards the Colosseum. On the way I visited the Basilica de San Clemente, but it was nothing special.

For dinner I had my first pasta in Italy!